Mauritius celebrates the festive season like no other. Religious fervour and shopping spree grip everyone. It’s no use fighting it. So just get into the mood.
The good times are here. Throughout the island, spirits are high and smiles greet you at every turn. Richly decorated Christmas trees spring up all over the place. Father Christmas himself seems to be in every street, every shopping mall, handing out gifts to awestruck kids.
In Mauritius, December is shopping month. Buoyed by the summer heat, Mauritians are on the lookout for the best deals. Prices tumble and wallets hold a lesser grip on everyone’s coins. Late night shopping is all the craze. Major towns like Port Louis and Rose Hill go into open market mode. Shops close late, while in the streets, hawkers, clients and curious onlookers mix in a joyful crowd. The frenzy goes crescendo, hitting its peak on Christmas Eve.
Feeling a bit drained after unwrapping all those gifts and playing with the kids? Too bad for you, because New Year’s Eve is just around the corner.
Mauritians see it very much as a family affair. Be it around a barbecue or that dish your mum only cooks on extra special occasions, old and young celebrate the last hours of the year and the coming of the new one.
As midnight nears, people spill out into the streets. And when the clock strikes 12, a joyous hell breaks loose. Firecrackers ring around the island and the skies light up with fireworks. Those who have made their way down to the beach get the most unspoilt views of the spectacle. When the firecrackers die out, dancing often breaks out to the sound of the rhythmic sega, taking revellers well into the early hours of the new day…
If the next morning, you wake up with a bit of a headache, go about it the Mauritian way. Stumble across to the neighbourhood restaurant and ask for a ‘bouillon poisson’. The delicious light fish broth is a tried and tested cure for hangovers.
As you can see, we’ve got all the bases covered. So party away! We, at MOZAIK, wish you a ‘fire cracking’ 2018!
